NEW RELEASE: AFTER LONDON - 'HESITATE'

NEW TALENT ALERT!.... That’s right you heard it here first, stop what you are doing! Hang up on your Nan, drop your cup of tea mid-sip, throw your sandwich down a drain I don’t care what it is you have to do just focus your attention right here for the immediate future. We have a very NEW and exciting band to share with you all! ‘After London’ a five piece from (yeah you guessed it) London have kick started their journey into the rock and roll world with their debut single ‘Hesitate’, and damn what an entrance they made.

It’s calm, seductive, tempting, entrancing……. the list could go on. Straight from the off you can hear the 90’s grunge influence mark it’s prominence, this isn’t your traditional take on an era of thrashy overdriven guitars and dooming percussive though. No, they opt for a mellow and soulful serenity to the style, still maintaining the dark tonal core but developing on it in their own way. The guitar draws you into a vortex of airy daydream as the vocals calmingly provide the light to guide you through the song. The drums and bass offer that stern steadiness throughout to keep you from drifting off too far ashore. Every instrument combines harmoniously to create a track that takes no effort to listen too, you can fully submerge yourself into the sound without any expense of thought. We see hints of many substyles creeping their way into the cauldron of creativity, the eerie echo, bold chorus and lyrical structure is an ode to many influences the band pay homage to. In particular the vocal patterns of Alex Turner, Michael Kiwanuka and Morrissey who are meticulous in the arrangement of lyrics in their songs. There’s an element of contrast and variance in the vocals from very soft and light to bold and strong during the outro. This particular section, with faint tremolo, has touches of Florence and The Machine about it. As band members they have several mutual musical interests including The Last Shadow Puppets, Yeah Yeah Yeah’s, Savages and Courtney Barnett all of which can be felt in some capacity on Hesitate. When asked about the message behind their debut track the band explained that “Hesitate explores the struggle between ideality/reality and how this conflict may cause an individual's descent into disillusionment. Sometimes it takes hardship to finally have the confidence to be yourself and when the last words of the chorus are left ringing out 'my mind doesn’t hesitate, my mind doesn’t think straight', this is the first stage of someone realising that”. A powerful tale I’m sure we can all agree. Possibly the strongest section of this song is the outro. It has an overwhelming presence and power behind it, coming to a near standstill, like a heart reaching its last beat, before bursting back into life with emotive strings, strong chords and lyrical repetition looming largely over. The continual contrast in energy is again exercised as we revisit the beginning riff to guide us out of the song eloquently and gently. A track that leaves us craving more and more!

The band started out as an acoustic/folk act at University when Francesca (vocals), Alex (Violin) and Will (Guitar) met and started playing together. Since, the band have grown, both in terms of personnel and style/sound, from their folky acoustic tendencies into, somewhat, unexplored terrain of grunge rock aesthetic. Both of these aspects coincided with eachother in cohesive fashion as the trio’s songwriting and influence grew it was apparent that the inclusion of other instruments would be imperative. It was at this point Francesca and Will asked their brother Byron to join on Bass Guitar. The band later moved to London to pursue their passion and met drummer Jake who completed the fold. Perhaps the most valuable asset in their arsenal is the wide array of musical influence each band member brings to the table. Having a plethora of tastes and perspectives has led them to discover their sound in a natural way which is demonstrated on ‘Hesitate’. There’s a very original touch to the track that makes it unique in its own right. It lures you into a state of intrigue and discovery, wondering where the song is heading; we hope this will be a symbolic trait the band makes full use of on material to follow. We won’t be turning grey waiting to find out, After London have confirmed that their debut EP is in the pipeline and follow-up single is well on its way so if you like what you hear give them a follow on Twitter and a Like on Facebook @after_london to keep up to date with everything that’s going on. They’ll also be playing some gigs in the coming months with one at The Monarch in Camden on 27th January 2017, get yourselves down to that and check them out! We’re told ‘Hesitate’ is only a small taste of their sound beginning to blossom and that which follows will only build further. So considering yourselves warned…… eye’s peeled!

Check out 'Hesitate' on their Soundcloud HERE or via the YouTube video at the foot of this article.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6jL5KQf5xk